The Georgian charge d’affaires here invited Korean election officials to visit the Caucasus country as observers for its presidential election on Oct. 27, during a press briefing at the country’s chancery in Seoul on Friday.

“Georgia’s legislature recently enacted a number of political reforms that bolster the country’s democratic institutions and ensure the coming presidential poll would be free and fair,” said Georgian Charge d’Affaires George Khabelashvili.

The election commissions of South Korea and Georgia signed a cooperation agreement in Seoul on June 14 in which the two nations pledged to share know-how and experience on best practices and election management strategies.

Lee In-bok, chairman of the Korean National Election Commission, and Zurab Kharatishvili, chairman of the Georgian Central Election Commission, signed an MOU when Kharatishvili visited Seoul from June 13-14, outlining how the two election bodies could cooperate on election-related issues including seminars, workshops and visits.

Some 1,800 election management officials from dozens of international organizations and countries around the world visited Georgia last year, Khabelashvili said. Korean officials were also invited to observe presidential voting to be held in October at any stage of the election campaign.

Last year, a coalition of opposition parties, dubbed Georgian Dream, swept the parliamentary vote.

The country’s top two foreign policy priorities remain integrating the country into the European community and gaining admission into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Georgia and the European Union have concluded negotiations on the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area, which is a part of Georgia’s association agreement with Europe. The DCFTA and the association agreement will contribute to Georgia’s economic integration into Europe.

Georgia Dream has also been making popular political reforms since gaining the majority of seats in the country’s legislature.

One of the first things the new ruling party did was revamp the prison system by immediately putting a stop to inhumane treatment including torture and starting health checks of inmates. Other reforms included bolstering the independence of the media from government interference, opening civil and criminal trial proceedings to the public, and ensuring the protection of human rights and adherence to the rule of law by guaranteeing the independence of the judiciary.

By Philip Iglauer (ephilip2011@heraldcorp.com)